Highway safety device



Dec, 9; 1924 1,518,616

S VARNELL ET AL HIGHWAY SAFETY DEVICE Filed July 9, 1924 Patented Dec. 9, 1924.

UNITED STATES SIDNEY VARNELL AND JAME$ L. HARRIS, 0F KINGSLAND, ARKANSAS.

HIGHWAY SAFETY DEVICE.

Application filed July 9,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we. SIDNEY VAKNELL and Janus L. I-Lxnnrs. citizens of the United States, residing at Kingsland, in the county of Cleveland and State of Arkansas, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Highway Safety Devices, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing.

Our present invention relates generally to safety roadway devices adapted for mounting adjacent to railway crossings and is more particularly a vehicular guard for railway crossings designed especially to prevent the careless speedy crossing of railway tracks by automobiles, our object being the provision of a simple effective device whereby to force approach of a railway crossing by automobiles at a comparatively slow rate of speed and in this way insure careful crossing of the tracks and observation of the latter as to the approach of trains.

More especially our invention aims to provide a roadway device of this character which will embody the functions of a signal as well as those of an actual guard, as well as one which is capable of ready mounting and the first cost of which is practically the last cost.

With the above in mind. the future ob jects as well as the resulting advantages of our invention will be apparent from the following description, in the course of which reference is made to the accompanying drawing illustrating our invention and forming a part of this specification.

In the drawing,

Figure 1 is a top plan view illustrating the practical application of our invention,

Figure 2 is an enlarged plan view of a fragmentary portion of one of the guard plates,

Figure 3 is a fragn'ientary section therethrough,

Figure .t is a vertical sectional view taken substantially on the line l4c of Figure 1, and

Figure 5 is a vertical sectional view illustrating a slightly modified form.

Referring now to these figures and particularly to Figure 1 we have shown in top plan view a portion of a roadway surface indicated at 10, along which traffic, that is vehicular trafiic moves in the direction of the arrows 11 and 12 across railway tracks 1924. Serial No. 725,005.

generally indicated at 13, safe passage over which it is the primary object of the inven-- tion to insure.

In the furtherance of this obiect our in vention proposes the disposition of guard plates 14 transversely across the roadway surface 10 and flush or substantiallv flush therewith, these guard plates for their support being either spiked or otherwise firmly attached and anchored to the roadway surface or embedded in the roadwav as for instance when the latter is formed of concrete and the guard plates applied when the roadway is surfaced.

The guard plates 14; are suitably spaced upon opposite sides of the railway tracks 13 so that traflic approaching the tracks in either direction is guarded and. inasmuch as in the performance of their intended functions they require approaching traffic to reduce speed before the guard plates are encountered, they are for this reason placed close enough to the railway tracks to prevent automobiles and similar vehicles from picking up speed between the guard plates and the railway tracks.

Each guard plate has two areas adjacent to its opposite sides each area enclosed between upstanding flanges 15 and each area provided with upstanding spurs 16 inclined in the direction of approaching traffic and in a series sufficient in number to prevent the passage of pneumatically tired vehicles without serious injury to the tires thereof. Each of these guard areas is slightly less in width than the gauge of the ordinary automobile wheel so that by careful guiding of the vehicle, making it necessary that the speed be substantially reduced as compared to that of ordinary running speed. the wheels may pass outside of the upstanding flanges 15.-

Betwecn the two guard areas thus formed the guard plates provide spaces 17 of ample width for the passage of horse drawn vehicles, these spaces being, however, closed to the passage of automobiles by virtue of centrally disposed obstructions 18 designed to catch the front axle of an automobile or other motor car.

It is preferable that such obstruction be in the form of a pivoted upright lever 19 which as shown in Figure 4 is normally held in upright position by a lower weighted end 20 pendulous within a roadway cavity 21 below the guard plate, so that the axle grasping lever, whose upper end is anchored as shown to engage the axle of a vehicle, may readily yield when struck by a horses hoof and the like. .We may, however, utilize a rigid obstruction in the form of an up standing bracket 22 as in Figure 5 which will in practice be made of suflicient weight and strength to avoid breakage.

As seen particularly in Figures 2 and 3 the flanges as well as the upstanding spurs 16 may be formed by slitting the guard plate and upsetting integral portions thereof,

It thus becomes obvious that in conjunction with suitable roadway signs and directory indications, our improved vehicular guard is well calculated to carry out the objects of the invention first above stated and will insure against the present rapidly increasing number of railway crossing accidents by forcing automobiles to approach the railway crossing at a speed substantially reduced below that of ordinary running speed so that extra care and observa tion of the approach of trains will necessarily follow and the usual penalties of reckless railway crossing will be avoided.

It is further to be understood-that while we have illustrated and described our improved vehicular guard as applied to and in connection with railway crossings, it is obvious that it is equally useful in connection with highways at road crossings and that it may be applied thereto with equal ease and facility and will operate to the same advantages in so far as vehicular traflie is concerned.

e claim:

1. A vehicular roadway guard for railway crossings consisting of a guard plate adapted to be disposed across a roadway surface, having guard areas adjacent to its opposite sides, each area of a width slightly less than the gauge of automobile wheels, and each area having a plurality of upstanding spurs adapted to prevent the passage of pneumatic tires thereover, the said guard plate having a space between the said side guard areas of ample width for the passage of horse drawn vehicles and being provided centrally of said space with an upstanding obstruction to the passage of motor vehicles as described.

2. A vehicular roadway guard for railway crossings having spaced apart guard areas, each of a width slightly less than the gauge of motor vehicle wheels and each provided with means prohibiting the passage of pneumatically tired wheels thereof, the space between said guard areas providing for the passage of horse drawn vehicles and an upstanding obstruction centrally of said space to prevent the passage of motor vehicles thereover.

3. A vehicular roadway guard for railway crossings having spaced apart guard areas, each of a width slightly less than the gauge of motor vehicle wheels and each provided with means prohibiting the passage of pneumatically tired wheels thereover, the space between said guard areas providing for the passage of horse drawn vehicles, and an upstanding obstruction centrally of said space to prevent the passage of motor vehicles thereover, said obstruction being in the form of a pivoted upright lever adapted to engage the axle of a motor vehicle and yieldable upon engagement of a horses hoof therewith.

4. A vehicular roadway guard for railway crossings having spaced apart guard areas, each of a width slightly less than the gauge of motor vehicle wheels and each provided with means prohibiting the passage of pneumatically tired wheels thereover, the space between said guard areas providing for the passage of horse drawn vehicles, and an upstanding obstruction centrally of said space to prevent the passage of motor vehicles thereover, each of said side areas being enclosed between upright guide flanges as described.

5. A vehicular roadway guard for railprevent the passage of motor vehicle-s over the said central space as described.

In testimony whereof we hereunto affix our signatures.

SIDNEY VARNELL.

JAMES L. HARRIS 

